Grief-stricken tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams were flying to join their family today after their older half-sister was shot dead following a dispute in suburban Los Angeles.

Yetunde Price, 31, was with a man in a sport utility vehicle shortly after midnight yesterday and "somehow they had become involved in a confrontation with the local residents", said Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Richard Pena.

A 24-year-old man has been arrested in the hunt for the killer. Aaron Michael Hammer was being held in custody without bail, he said.

Earlier, deputies searching for three people believed to be involved in the shooting surrounded a house in Compton at about 6am, but it was empty.

"We are extremely shock-ed, saddened and devastated by the shooting death of our beloved Yetunde," the family said in a statement. "She was our nucleus and our rock. She was personal assistant, confidante, and adviser to her sisters, and her death leaves a void that can never be filled."

Members of the family were heading to California. Serena has been in Toronto to film a guest role in a cable TV drama series and Venus was flying from New York.

"This is sad and very tragic news," WTA Tour chief executive Larry Scott said in a statement.

Miss Price was shot in the upper body. Deputies on patrol heard the gunshots and found her, but she was later pronounced dead at a hospital.

The man who had been with her was not injured and was being interviewed by authorities.

Neighbour Robert Miller, 49, said he heard about a dozen gunshots.

An assault rifle was found at the scene of the shooting, Mr Pena said.

Miss Price was one of five Williams sisters who spent their early years in Compton, a crime and poverty-ridden community where gang fighting has claimed many lives.